Sicilian winery Donnafugata is making wine bottles more sustainable

The brand is using a bottle that is 25% lighter and has an ocean-friendly closure

By Georgina Torbet Published September 6, 2024

donnafugata sustainable wine bottles lighea 2023 09 1 — Donnafugata

As many companies look for ways to be more environmentally conscious, wine brand Donnafugata is focusing in on its packaging. While traditional wine bottles have remained largely unchanged for hundreds of years, now sustainability concerns have the brand considering ways its can keep the look and feel of a wine bottle but reduce the environmental impact.

Donnafugata’s new packaging for its 2023 vintage is made from recycled glass and is 25% lighter than a typical bottle, weighing in at 410 grams instead of the usual 550 grams. The recycled glass bottle is produced entirely on Sicily, the island off the coast of Italy where the brand hails from, and also includes a Nomacorc Ocean closure which is made from recycled plastic that was collected from coastal areas.

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“It is a wine that looks to the future,” says Donnafugata CEO and family-proprietor Josè Rallo. “The introduction of the Cento per Cento Sicilia bottle and the Nomacorc Ocean closure are innovations in line with the sustainable development goals of the UN 2030 Agenda. These decisions add to over 30 years of good practices from reducing the vineyard’s environmental impact to the production of clean energy, as well as the protection of biodiversity to support the land. It is our ongoing commitment that has enabled us to obtain SOStain certification for sustainable Sicilian winemaking.”

The wine contained in the bottled, Donnafugata’s Lighea, is created from grapes from the tiny volcanic island of Pantelleria which experiences extreme sun and wind conditions.

“The extreme nature of Pantelleria has always represented a real challenge and Lighea is a truly authentic interpretation of this land,” said Antonio Rallo, Donnafugata Winemaker, CEO and family-proprietor. “Growing the vines so low and in terraces requires a lot of labor, from pruning and harvesting to the essential maintenance of kilometers of dry- lava stone walls. Knowledge, hard work, and dedication are the basis of the teamwork that makes it possible to create unique and highly distinctive products like Lighea.”

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Liquor, Beer, Wine & Drinks

Georgina Torbet

Georgina Torbet is a cocktail enthusiast based in Berlin, with an ever-growing gin collection and a love for trying out new…

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